The present invention relates to a nozzle assembly for a vacuum device such as a vacuum cleaner, and more particularly to an arrangement for attachment of a rigid vacuum conduit to a nozzle.
Vacuum devices such as vacuum cleaners typically include a nozzle to which a flexible vacuum hose is attached. A rigid vacuum conduit is typically used as an intermediate connection between the flexible vacuum hose and the nozzle. It is often desirable that a high degree of rotational freedom exist between the rigid vacuum conduit and the nozzle to permit the nozzle to rotate as necessary over surfaces of changing contour. On the other hand, vacuum efficiency requires that the coupling between the rigid vacuum conduit and the nozzle be reasonably airtight. It would, thus, be desirable to provide a nozzle assembly achieving a desirable balance between rotational freedom of a nozzle relative to a rigid vacuum conduit, and the airtightness of the connection between the vacuum conduit and the nozzle.
It would be additionally desirable to provide an arrangement for coupling between a rigid vacuum conduit and a nozzle that is resistant to jamming in the presence of dirt particles trapped in the connection region.